Start the assessment now, but do not pay the processing fee or plan the gift until the sale proceeds are certain, since the fee is nonrefundable and the gift is irrevocable. Re-read the official terms on the day you commit, because they may change.
Assess early, commit only on cleared funds
The parts of the process that cost nothing but time, meaning the admissibility review, the family eligibility check, the cross-border tax opinion and a careful reading of the official program page, can begin before the business sale closes. What should wait is anything irreversible. The official framework describes the processing fee as nonrefundable and the gift as payable after successful vetting; a sale that falls through after the fee is paid leaves the applicant out of pocket, and a gift funded by a bridging loan against a sale that later collapses is a worse position still. Because terms published on a program website can be revised, the applicant should confirm the amounts, the sequence and the family provisions on the official page on the day the fee is paid, and keep a dated copy. If the timeline slips, that is a reason to re-verify, not to assume the earlier reading still holds.
Hypothetical example: an independent book publisher expects to sell a company before financing a Gold Card case. The first review should complete the classification and admissibility assessment, confirm family eligibility, obtain tax advice and re-check the official terms before the processing fee is paid. The sale closing should not be treated as a residence date, because the stated framework still requires vetting and the separate employment-based immigrant process. Once the applicant is ready to make the payment, retain proof that it was made by the applicant to the U.S. government under the then-current instructions. A changed term or delayed sale calls for a fresh check, not reliance on an old printout.